- The police department of Columbus, Ohio, says it's launched an investigation into two officers.
- They responded to a dad's call that his 11-year-old daughter was talking to a "predator" online.
The police department of Columbus, Ohio, said it launched a misconduct inquiry into two officers who appeared to blame an 11-year-old girl for being groomed.
The investigation followed the child's father sharing a video of the police response to his call reporting that the girl was manipulated into sending explicit images of herself to an adult man.
The officers' response in the video was that the girl could be punished for creating "child porn."
The man posted the video of his encounter on Facebook on Friday. On Monday, he also posted it to TikTok, where it quickly began to spread.
Insider knows the name of the man who posted the video but isn't publishing it because he says his daughter is the victim of a sex crime.
The video showed a doorbell-camera recording of a man talking to two officers on the doorstep after dark.
The Columbus Division of Police said it "acknowledges" the video in its statement announcing the investigation, posted a few hours after the video, but didn't name the officers in the footage.
The TikTok post said the daughter had been "a victim" of an "online predator" who was "a grown man."
"He manipulated her into sending pictures of herself," he wrote as the caption of the video.
The father said he called at 6 p.m., but the officers didn't show up until midnight. The video has been viewed more than 700,000 times and has also caught significant attention through re-shares on X and through posts from TikTokers with larger followings.
Insider was unable to reach the person who posted the video.
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The clip showed two officers appearing and knocking at the door.
The man answered and informed them his daughter was in bed. One officer, a woman, responded by saying, "It still happened, though, right?"
The dad said yes, then informed them he "just wanted you guys to come over and talk to her."
"I just want her to realize what this was," he said. "I mean, reality is, there's not much I probably can do about it, is there?"
The female officer then told him: "I mean, she can probably get charged with child porn."
"Who, she can?" the dad responded. "She's 11 years old."
The female officer then said: "She's creating it, right?"
The father, clearly shocked, repeated that his daughter was 11.
"Doesn't matter," the female officer insisted. "She's still making porn."
"No, she's not," the dad said. "She's being manipulated by a grown-ass adult on the internet."
Advocates generally object to the term "child porn," arguing that it creates a false association with the pornography created by consenting adults. They generally refer to explicit imagery of children as "child sexual abuse material."
When the female officer asked the father whether his daughter was taking the photos, he responded by ending the conversation.
"You guys have a nice evening," he said. "Thank you for coming."
When they turned to leave, he asked them: "Are you serious?"
After the video began to be shared widely, the Columbus Division of Police released a statement.
"The Columbus Division of Police acknowledges a video being shared on social media involving two officers responding to a call for service," it reads. "The Department of the Inspector General, which investigates complaints of misconduct and/or excessive use of force by sworn personnel, has opened an inquiry into this incident.
It said the department "regards all allegations of sexual misconduct with the utmost seriousness" and handles such cases "with the highest degree of concern."
It said officers with a specialism in sexual-assault cases had opened an investigation.